Weekend Rambling – Oct. 20

Teacher Man @ My University Money writes My University Money Interactive Student Budget – My University Money is proud to offer its own unique original resource with its interactive student budget. We understand that you’re busy and don’t have time to fuss around making excel spreadsheets (all you accounting students out there aside), so we went ahead and set up a colour-coded model that even an humanities guy like me can figure out!

Steven @ Grocery Alerts writes Can you eat for $26 a week – Welfare Food Challenge – An anti-poverty group in BC is challenging politicians and residents to try and survive for $26 worth of food for a week. During that week, participants will only eat the food they can buy with $26 dollars. I will be taking part of the food challenge

harry campbell @ Your Personal Finance Pro writes Reader Question: Investing in Real Estate Without a Down Payment, What is an REIT? – I know there are a lot of people itching to buy real estate but their main hurdle is the large 20% down payment required. 20% of any property is a lot of money, so one option for the casual investor is to turn to REIT’s. REIT stands for Real Estate Investment Trust and they behave similarly to regular stocks. A REIT offers common shares to the public and in exchange, you become an actual owner of real estate. REIT’s receive special tax treatment from the government but in exchange they must

Gen Y @ Gen Y Finance Journey writes When a Deal is Not a Deal – If you’re like me, you love getting great deals and using coupons for all your purchases. But all too often, people end up spending more money by using coupons and taking advantage of deals. So how do you know if a deal is saving you money or costing you money? Read on for some guidelines.

krantcents @ KrantCents writes I Will Only Work for Fun! – I will work for fun or I won’t work! Over the years, I have seen various signs such as work for food, beer, $ dollars, satisfaction, fame, money or the joy of working. Too often these words are meaningless. If you do not enjoy what you do, you should quit! That’s right, quit your job.

Daisy @ Add Vodka writes How to Ask For a Raise – The below post is a guest post. I work in the public sector where we can’t ask for raises. Well – we can, but we would be denied.

Jennifer Lynn @ Broke-Ass Mommy writes Willow Bay, Here We Come – I am not dead, just zipping along in the car on our way to Willow Bay, Pennsylvania for two days of autumn camping fun. Will attempt to provide more tales from the tent as the weekend progresses. Have a superb Friday, everyone.

IMB @ Investing Money writes Common Investing Mistakes – Find out if you are making these common mistakes and what you can do to increase your retirement funds.

Roger the Amateur Financier @ The Amateur Financier writes Some Thoughts on Crowdsourcing – If there’s a task you need to get done, there’s plenty of ways to go about completing it nowadays, each with their own pros and cons. You can do the task yourself, although you’ll need to know how to do whatever it is, and do so well enough to achieve your desired goal.

Ted Jenkin @ Your Smart Money Moves writes The Financial Cost of Getting a DUI – Most people don’t think about how costly getting a DUI could be because nobody ever plans to get a DUI.

Jason @ Work Save Live writes The Rise of the Female Trader – Female Traders on the Rise For months I’ve been wanting to post an Infographic here on WSL, but I just haven’t found the time to do so.

Luke @ Learn Bonds writes Par Value – What it is and How it Works – In this article we define par value from a bond investors standpoint. Everything you need to know about par value before buying a bond.

Passive Income Earner @ The Passive Income Earner writes Dividend Growth Index – 2012 Q3 Results – It’s that time of the year where we review the Dividend Growth Index (DGI). A year ago, a group of blogger focused on dividend investing got together to create a dividend growth index. This quarter (Q3 2012) marks the first year of the index. Here is a background on the Dividend Growth Index (DGI).

Wayne @ Young Family Finance writes How Families Can Save Money Around The Home – The cost of living is still on the increase for Britain, with pay rises failing to keep up with the cost of inflation. In August, inflation stood at 2.5 percent, while the average employee benefitted from just a 1.5 percent yearly pay increase.

Lance @ Money Life and More writes Should I Pay Off My Car Loan Update – In August I asked my readers “Should I pay off my 0.9% car loan?“. There were many different opinions on what I should do. After a few weeks of considering the facts I’ve finally come to a decision.

A Blinkin @ Funancials writes Presidents are at the Mercy of the Business Cycle – If you’ve been following along, you know that we have been looking at the economic track record of past Presidents. Hopefully, this will allow us to make an informed decision when we cast our vote for Mitt Romney or President Obama (or neither). I’m searching high and low for possible trends. Unfortunately, the trend that I have noticed (thus far) is that there is no trend.

TDB @ Tax Deduction Blog writes Tax organization : Organize Your Home By Setting Up A Home Filing System – How many times were you caught up in a situation wherein you were trying to get hold of your tax records or bank statements but could not locate them? For this reason, it is vital for anyone to save time and set up a home filing system, that best suits their needs.

Tushar @ Start Investing Money writes Prosper: an American Peer to Peer Lending Club – This Post was Originally published at Prosper: an American Peer to Peer Lending Club on Start Investing MoneyPeer to peer lending is certainly becoming more popular, and Prosper is one of the leading clubs of its kind for investors and borrowers in the US to consider.

Shawanda @ You Have More Than You Think writes 3 Semi-Easy Ways to Boost Your Credit Score (and Get a Free Credit Check) – my position on borrowing money has shifted a bit. Two years ago, I would’ve ended my answer with “before I knew better.” No buts. No qualifying statements. Y’all know me. Debt freedom is worth far more than a depreciating asset I can’t afford. Heck, I struggle with taking out a mortgage to buy a modest home.

Your Boss @ What Your Boss Really Thinks writes I am Offering Resume Review Services – Let’s admit it, not everyone is capable of composing a resume that adequately highlights their abilities.The candidate who lands an interview is usually the one who has the most impressive resume. I can help you to create a well-crafted resume that fits your skills, experience and background.

TRL @ The Retired Landlord writes Best Ways to Buy a Rental Property – Find out the many ways that you can pay for a rental property. There are more ways than the traditional mortgage.

Dannielle @ Odd Cents writes How to Decorate With Paint – One of the best budget home décor ideas that I’ve come across is to decorate with paint. This is an inexpensive way to dramatically alter how a room looks. When it comes to painting there are several options available.

Jester @ The Ultimate Juggle writes Free Things Cost You Money Too – There are times when free things cost money too. Sometimes much more than you could imagine. Check out my examples, they surprised me when I wrote about them.

Michelle @ The Shop My Closet Project writes How to Ride A Bus-Why are you so freakin’ scared? – Why should you learn how to ride a bus? Well, I’ve listed some reasons in the post. Let’s get a couple of things out of the way before you freak out on me.

JP @ My Family Finances writes Buying a House is definitely an Asset for Your Family – Freezing your housing costs and avoiding rent inflation are big assets. They don’t change on the whims of the housing market and they aren’t subject to the foolishness of investors.

Don @ MoneySmartGuides writes Class Warfare Heats Up – With President Obama continuing to call for those making over $250,000 to pay their fair share of taxes, class warfare is heating up just in time for the election.

Jon the Saver @ Free Money Wisdom writes How I Paid off $6,000 In Credit Card Debt – Paying off debt is no easy task. Learn how I paid off over six thousand dollars in consumer debt and finally escaped to freedom!

Mike @ Personal Finance Journey writes How to Compare Credit Cards – 4 Great ways to compare credit cards and make the right decision when choosing the right card for you.

Ashley @ Money Talks Coaching writes How Big Is Your Carrot? – I saw this picture the other day and loved it. Which carrot would you rather have? I think it speaks so clearly to the financial decisions we have to

Tim @ Fortune Fanatic writes Tips for Buying a Used Car – Here’s how you can get a good deal on a used car. See these tips for buying a used car before you buy.

Tushar @ Finance TUBE writes Business 101: 6 Steps to a Successful Small Business – Today we will talk about 6 Steps to a Successful Small Business. If you are considering starting a business, start by what you know and like. Test your ideas first to make sure that your potential clients like your idea too. Next you need to plan ahead.

Eddie @ Finance Fox writes How to Earn More on Your Savings – Here are a few tips to try and considerations to bear in mind when saving money in any kind of savings account.

CAPI @ Creating a Passive Income writes Passive Income With a Camper – Have you ever thought about creating a passive income with a camper? It’s entirely possible.

Crystal @ Budgeting in the Fun Stuff writes Could That Happen to Me? – ESPN showed Called Broke, it was about pro athletes who went broke after making more money in four or five years than most people make in their lifetimes.

Jen @ Master the Art of Saving writes UPDATED: Stupid Sewer-A Mini Update – We’re all moved in, but it’s still a disaster here. OMG! All this stuff keeps coming up and needing to get done and so many expenses.

Invest It Wisely @ Invest It Wisely writes Why I Love Being a Landlord – Read why I love being a landlord! Perhaps you’ll consider taking the plunge too.

ETZ25 @ Entertainment Timez writes Stock AIG Purchase Update – Well we took the plunge and purchased some AIG stock! We believe it will be a strong stock in the future, and hope that it at least doubles in the next five years!

PITR @ Passive Income To Retire writes Which Path to Early Retirement? – Self-employment has inherent risks, but working a day job that I don’t like is even more difficult. Which one should I choose?

Suba @ Broke Professionals writes How to Manage People – Part 2 – How to Manage People – Part 2 is a post from: Broke Professionals if you enjoy it, please visit us and subscribe to the Feed. Real tips from a real manager – support your staff. A while back, I explored the top paying jobs of 2012 and noted that 6 of them involved management positions.